Puss
by Clio S.S
Summary: One day, he would become like the Tiger of Kai. For now he was just a puss. I made it into one story - it's more proper now and easier to read - but I wanted to preserve all your comments, so I copied them here. Hope you're not mad.
1. Puss

**Puss**

He lifted himself from the bed, grabbing the bottle, then slid the garden door open. The air, smelling of flowers, felt invigorating on his face. The sky was glimmering with gold and rose of the sunrise, although it would be a while yet until the sunbeam rose over the wall surrounding the mansion.

The July nights were always short. The morning didn't feel chilly... Or perhaps it was the warmth of the sleep, still clinging to him. He sat down and rested his head against the frame, breathing in the fresh air. Birds had started their day long ago, their lively song making its way into the cell of unreality that place had suddenly become.

He turned his head. Sanada Yukimura was sound asleep, the cover pulled up to his nose, his hair scattered all over the pillow. He looked so peaceful one would hardly believe him to be a famed _Crimson Demon of War_, a volcano of energy and never resting tempest. Apparently, even demon, volcano and tempest sometimes fell asleep.

He curved his lips in an ironic smile.

Since the war against Oda, they had duelled with Yukimura countless times, not even once settling their rivalry. Usually, they ended dead on their feet, having no strength left to rise an arm any more and strike another blow. Kojūrō used to take them back home, and the rest of the evening was a party the whole division participated in, more than happy. Up till the next duel.

His smile softened.

If he could ever call himself happy, it would be on these days, filled with nothing but fighting to the full, when the matters of war could be forgotten for a moment.

He knew he would never win against Yukimura. Though he himself probably didn't even notice, young tiger was constantly improving and getting stronger, although it wouldn't be anywhere soon that he scored a victory. Unlike him, "One-Eyed Dragon" didn't have reserves. Where Yukimura's growth started, Masamune's came to an end.

Kojūrō would say, irritated, that he was exaggerating; that these few years between them were of no significance. They weren't. Or perhaps the really were, for Yukimura held an unfailing potential.

He was happy, truly happy, that in his short life he was blessed with such a rival. With him, he was able to go all the way and prove himself to the last breath.

Yukimura was like a puss, he thought now, looking at the ruffled hair on the bed; hot-headed, always prone to play, which he engaged in as if it was the most important matter of the world, always ready to show his claws. One day, he would become like the Tiger of Kai. For now he was just a puss.

He swigged from the bottle. Sake made him warm after the warmth of the night had already vanished in the chill of the morning.

The previous evening had ended in the booze-up as well. Or, rather, it had started with - for it had ended here, in his bedroom. He couldn't remember the details. It seemed they had fiercely discussed something, perhaps the mobilization in Edo, perhaps some worth mentioning duel in Kyōto. He could pretty well imagine Yukimura in such situation - shining eyes, flushed cheeks, sparkling with passion. The young one took everything so seriously...

He curved his lips again, amused.

And then, suddenly and unexpectedly, Yukimura's face was so close to his, and his lips searched for his. And they found.

What could sake make people do, he thought, shaking his head. In case of Yukimura it hadn't particularly changed anything - there was nothing to add to, in the first place; at the most, it had encouraged him to do something he would never do clear-headed.

When he had managed to pull his thoughts together, after the first moment of bewilderment; when he had come to realize Yukimura's lips had been soft and kind; when his mind had been filled with a - supposedly sake-induced - thought that he hadn't wanted to stop that moment, and he had embraced the shoulders of the young one... then Yukimura had simply zonked out. Apparently, his reserves had run down for a moment - and, when he thought of it in the fresh air of the morning, he decided the last act could possibly accelerate the consumption of his energy.

He only wondered... if some continuation had happened... would Yukimura have been as... irrepressible... as ever.

He felt dizzy.

It was highly possible he himself would have had no chance.

He shook his head to drive away the absurd visions. His gaze went to the bed, again, where Yukimura was sleeping like a child. _Surely, he won't remember anything._ That thought was as reassuring as... unpleasant.

Well, it was better that way.

He took yet another sip and brushed his hand through the hair. He needed a cold bath. And he would try to forget... as well.

The first sunbeam climbed over the wall and fell pale gold on his face. It was still so early... He didn't need to rush...

He let his eye-lids fall. The bottle slipped from his hand.

His head snapped up when something tickled his neck, making him think of someone's soft hair. His heart pounded faster.

It was only a butterfly, flying past his face and brushing his cheek with its wings.

Yukimura still lay with no motion. The sunbeam was moving over the bed towards his forehead.

He smiled with affection. And regret.

It was better that way.


	2. Awakening

**Awakening**

Something tickled his forehead. He frowned and lifted his eyelids, catching into them the first sunlight. It had to be morning already, he thought not very smartly, feeling the cold air on his face. He suppressed a very unmanly desire to curl down, bury himself under the cover and drift off to sleep again. Although... the bed felt so nice...

He levered himself up on his arms, valiantly letting the cover slide down from his back. The morning coldness clung to his bare skin right away, but the warmth of the sun was a fact. He raised his head.

Oho.

The world spun. He closed his eyes, trying to calm the reality swinging around him. Really, his head could get used to sake finally, but no - every time he woke up with the splitting pain under his skull and the feeling the vertical is an abstract concept for him. The bedding looked invitingly indeed.

Resolutely, he opened his eyes. No-one would say Sanada Genjirō Yukimura lost to alcohol! He refrained, though, from shaking his head to sober up.

He tried to recollect the events of the last night - and he couldn't at all. He tilted his head and only now realized it wasn't his bedroom. He frowned again. The name "his bedroom" applied to the room he was assigned in Ōshū.

He stirred.

Ō_shū_. He looked around furtively. Everything indicated that he had spent the last night in the bedroom of... Masamune-dono. What backed that idea most, was the fact Masamune-dono himself, leaning against the frame, sat by the garden door.

He squinted, deliberately ignoring that his heart, beating quite fast anyway, leapt in his chest.

Masamune-dono sat with his head inclined, dark hair hanging along his face. He was asleep. Sake bottle lay by his hand, forsaken. The rising sun enveloped his silhouette with its white light, playing with his hair and folds of kimono. He looked so...

Yukimura realized he was gaping. He felt the blush suffusing his cheeks. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember how he had ended here. He must have been dead drunk, he thought rather depressed and embarrassed. He should be grateful someone had taken care of him in such state. Someone, or...?

He gulped.

Really, he didn't need to cause inconvenience to Masamune-dono. _Sanada Yukimura, you could grow up at last,_ he reproached himself. Definitely, later he would apologize and promise that wouldn't happen again. In fact, he could already start to compose a speech.

The morning wind brushed against his skin. He shivered. It still had to be early. It would take some time before the day got really warm. He lifted his eyes again. Masamune-dono would freeze if he stayed like that, he thought, slightly disturbed. The best would be to cover him, but then he would wake and...

He gulped again. For some unknown reason, he didn't feel like looking Masamune-dono into eyes after having spent the night in his bedroom. He pulled the kimono on and tied round his waist, intensely thinking over the problem and ignoring the headache. He moved closer, still not any wiser, and knelt beside the man he held - he realized it now - in equally high esteem as his Lord. Something inside him twitched almost painfully. So he knelt and only looked, unable to tear his eyes away, absorbing all the details of the man's face: straight nose, firmly set eyebrows, long eyelashes and sensitive lips. He looked and still wasn't satiated. There was something magical in that moment and that place...

Another cold breath of wind brushed his hair. He sat down, carefully resting against Masamune-dono's side. Perhaps he could keep him warm like this...

He didn't manage to think longer, for then One-Eyed Dragon moved and lifted his head. Yukimura froze. Well, it was foolish indeed to expect that experienced warrior would sleep like a child when someone cuddled up to him. He was under the impression the blush would incinerate the skin of his cheeks; nevertheless, he raised his head bravely. The blue gaze of Masamune-dono was surprised, above all. He heaved a sigh of relief.

And then, unexpectedly for himself as well, he craned his neck and drew his lips closer to Masamune-dono's.

If the man's gaze had been _surprised_ before, now it couldn't be described in any other way than _shocked_. Yukimura moved away, not knowing what exactly he had done - knowing only that he had done the only possible thing he could do. Masamune-dono sat still, regarding him with one wide-open eye. Yukimura didn't dare to think about anything at all. His reality suddenly narrowed to the sunlight shining through Masamune-dono's hair, the blueness of his astonished - and so calm - gaze, the smell of summer flowers coming from the garden, and the softness of the slighly parted lips. His heart pounded fiercely, absorbing, experiencing, waiting. His head spun again, yet, this time, the sensation wasn't nearly as unpleasant as before.

Then Masamune-dono, as if unsure, inclined towards him, moving his face closer... Yukimura felt the soft hair tickling his forehead...

"Masamune-sama!"

The door was slid wide open.

* * *

"Masamune-sama! We're setting out on the inspection in..."

Katakura Kojūrō rarely felt surprised by anything and even more rarely he let himself show it; nevertheless, the sight before his eyes stupefied him completely. Behindhand, he realized he should leave discreetly; that moment, however, he only stood there and look, hands still on the door wings. He hadn't expected to find Yukimura-dono, of all people, in Masamune-sama's bedroom.

And, for all he saw, it seemed he had just rudely interrupted Masamune-sama...

For a moment, there was a shared dismay. Masamune-sama only blinked, bewildered and confused like never. Yukimura-dono looked at Kojūrō with his eyes of a frightened bunny. Kojūrō, for his part, couldn't drive away a thought that occurred to him: that Masamune-sama and Yukimura-dono looked rather lovely together... However, that frozen tranquillity ceased quickly when Yukimura-dono flung himself on the mat and bowed deeply.

"Katakura-dono! I beg your forgiveness! My act was shameful, and I am ready to bear the consequences and receive my punishment!"

Kojūrō blinked. Certainly, a dose of healthy chaos was a good thing, but even he was amazed by Yukimura-dono's eloquence so early in the morning. Besides, he wondered what exactly the young lord was apologizing for and if he even knew it himself. He looked at the youth, whose forehead still touched the mat, long hair tangled all around his head.

Kojūrō's eyes shifted to Masamune-sama, ready to meet his knowing gaze, mocking and amused, the one Yukimura-dono usually brought onto his face. But Masamune-sama didn't look at Kojūrō; his eyes lay on the boy, still bowed down on the mat. Kojūrō felt something warm fill him inside. He didn't remember when he had seen so affectionate look on his Lord's face before. Masamune-sama smiled softly.

Inwardly, Kojūrō sighed. "It is me who should apologize for such an intrusion. It will not happen again," he said. "I wanted to remind of our inspection of the west grounds." Masamune-sama looked at him. "Of course, Yukimura-dono is invited as well," Kojūrō added.

The young man lifted his eyes, in which astonishment mixed with relief. "Thank you very much, Katakura-dono!" he shouted, bowing again.

Now Masamune-sama rolled his eyes, his face expressing the usual amusement. "Come on. Breakfast is waiting," ha said, nudging Yukimura.

Kojūrō left to the corridor. He wasn't able to forget - and, in fact, he didn't feel like at all - his Lord's smile. He looked back over his shoulder.

He hoped Sanada Yukimura would stay in Ōshū longer.


	3. Tryst

A/N. It owes some kind of inspiration to Gary Leupp and his brilliant book "Male Colors: The Construction of Homosexuality in Tokugawa Japan".

* * *

**Tryst**

The inspection of the western grounds took them the whole day. When they finally came back to the castle, it was already night, but their spirits were high regardless of the fatigue. The last could have something to do with the meal awaiting them, regarding that since breakfast they had had to make do with almost soldier's provision.

Once more, Kojūrō decided that nothing tasted better than sake of Ōshū. Drinking slowly, he negligently observed two other men and revised his prior statement about the high spirits. Masamune-sama sipped his drink, relaxed and content indeed. Yukimura-dono, however, didn't even touch his sake, and Kojūrō kept wondering if it had something to do with the boozy party they had held the previous evening or was there more to it - and he inclined for the latter. For the whole day, Yukimura-dono had remained exceptionally silent, which - in his case - surely attracted the attention. Even now, he looked as if he wanted to squeeze himself in the corner or disappear completely - very unlike the famed Crimson Demon, who, well, usually created stir and brought chaos with him, wherever he appeared. In contrast to him, Masamune-sama seemed to be in an excellent mood since morning. He usually _was_ in an excellent mood; Kojūrō, however, could notice a slight change in his lord's demeanour. After all, he had known him since childhood, he knew him as he knew himself. But he didn't complain, far from this. He wished all the best for Masamune-sama. If Yukimura-dono put him in such mood, he was more than welcomed here.

Yukimura-dono, however, looked far from feeling welcomed here. He devoured the meal with his typical rapacious hunger - so he couldn't be suspected of any sudden illness, at least - but he didn't say a word. Light of the lamps, falling at his figure, ignited the reflections in his hair - Kojūrō thought fleetingly it made sense since Yukimura-dono was a flame. In each wrinkle of his clothing and each indentation of his skin, the dancing blaze fought endlessly with a shadow. It could be the reason why it seemed to Kojūrō that Yukimura-dono's hands trembled - but he decided that in this flickering gleam even his eagle eye could be deluded. After all, if Yukimura-dono was to tremble, it could be only of an excitement.

Perhaps it was this, anyway, he thought after a while, smiling to himself. With his keen senses of a warrior, he could tell that the tension, always existing between Masamune-sama and Yukimura-dono, was considerably strong today, its nature differing from usual. After rather... peculiar morning everything had seemed to return to normal; however, each hour they had spent together, the air had only intensified. Yukimura-dono wasn't anywhere near as good actor as Masamune-sama, who could delude anyone but Kojūrō with his beaming smile. In that case...

"Good night, Masamune-sama, Yukimura-dono," he said, standing up.

"What plans for tomorrow, Kojūrō?" Masamune asked, shifting his eyes to him.

"Nothing special, I've thought of some practice."

Masamune nodded, rising himself and grabbing the bottle. "Good night, Kojūrō."

"Good night, Katakura-dono!" Yukimura called, jerking out of his reverie he had spent the whole meal in.

Kojūrō, still smiling, left the room and slid the door close. "This time I'll let you sleep enough," he thought a bit distracted, recalling the events of morning. He was positive about not disturbing Masamune-sama any more.

* * *

After Kojūrō had left, Yukimura continued sitting and staring ahead rather thoughtlessly. Masamune looked at him with a sneer. "You stay here?"

"W-what?" Yukimura's head snapped, and he looked at his host, then quickly averted his eyes.

Masamune sighed inwardly and shook the bottle invitingly. "There's plenty left," he said. "I don't tend to drink alone, and Kojūrō went to bed already," he added in a tone of a veiled hint. Behindhand, he realized that try and get to Sanada Yukimura using the veiled hint was probably as successful as Oda Nobunaga's ideation of general unification. "Or, perhaps, you're scared I'll beat you in drinking again," he decided on another tactics.

Yukimura jumped to his feet, and Masamune congratulated himself. Definitely, when dealing with Sanada Yukimura, one needed to be less subtle. Young Tiger's eyes flashed with a hurt and obvious challenge. "Masamune-dono!" he called wholeheartedly. "You haven't beaten me even once, neither on the battlefield nor elsewhere!"

"Except for yesterday," Masamune added smoothly with a smug smile.

"Yesterday..." Yukimura started and fell silent. Masamune was under the impression his cheeks turned a gentle shade of red.

"Now's your chance to get even," he suggested, sliding the door open and looking back over his shoulder. Yukimura stood in the middle of the room undecided, his eyes fixed on the mat. "Not that I'm going to gossip; still, someone can find out that Sanada Genjirō Yukimura loses to alcohol..." the Lord of Ōshū threw in casually.

Yukimura cast a fiery glance at him. Masamune laughed. Somewhere in his mind, there was a thought he liked that look.

* * *

He didn't intend to make Yukimura drunk, he only felt like something more than sake tonight. He didn't intend to force him to anything; if he could, however, judge from the morning events - and the previous night, which was not to forget - it was high time to act in a more decisive way. And hope that they wouldn't be interrupted this time... He paused at that thought, feeling dizzy. What was that he really wanted?

He lifted his head and looked at Yukimura, who sipped his sake cautiously. He recalled yesterday evening, when Yukimura - intoxicated - had suddenly been so close. In the morning - this time suffering from hangover - the young one had been attracted to him once again. Masamune wanted to know if the third time - more conscious now - Yukimura would be as eager...

Because Masamune was. In contrast to that living flame incarnated, he himself ignited slowly and then burned slowly. When he began to want something, he didn't cease but aimed at satisfaction. Already twice, Yukimura had given him to understand he wasn't interested only in fight with him - and Masamune decided to respond.

Now, however, Yukimura's eyes were fixed on the mat, and there was no trace of his previous outburst left. Drinking sake in the small sips, he tried to stop his hands from trembling.

Ha.

Masamune slid the garden-door slightly open and let the air smelling of evening flowers in. He took a deep breath, suddenly realizing he himself was far from being relaxed. He mastered his emotions completely, and thus someone who didn't know him well would believe he had been spending the most carefree day of his life. He looked at the moon, a slender crescent climbing over the velvet sky. He hadn't been spending the most carefree day of his life - but certainly one of the most exciting.

_Kojūrō, you knew it all well._

He turned his head and looked at Yukimura again. Young one lowered his eyes quickly, but Masamune managed to see what his gaze was burning with. "When it comes to the crunch, it's always me who has to do it," he claimed with an affected grudge, only after a moment realizing he had spoked his thought aloud.

Yukimura cast a rather timid glance at him. "What do you mean, Masamune-dono?"

Masamune rose from his place and sat next to him. Yukimura straightened his back and looked him into eyes. Firmly, One-Eyed Dragon took him by the chin and kissed him.

Not even a while had passed when he was under the impression that everything - starting from the ends of his hair and the tip of his nose, through his ears and neck, up to his fingertips - burst into flames. He opened his eyes and met the flame dancing in Yukimura's gaze. Young Tiger's hands already crept on his arms, making his skin tense. Suddenly, Masamune realised he had nothing against burning in this blaze and it would really happen if he didn't take control. He pushed Yukimura onto the mat, bending over him and drawing the lips again to his mouth. Yukimura moaned, his body getting tense, and moved his hands onto Masamune's back.

Masamune pulled away, taking a breath. "They do it more often in the West," he gasped.

"The west of... what?" Yukimura asked, panting.

"Continent," Masamune explained in a tone of a man of the world.

"Uhm," Yukimura's tone clearly indicated he didn't have the faintest idea what Masamune was talking about.

In fact, Masamune realised, he himself wasn't interested in the topic either. Yukimura possessively grasped his head, demanding another kiss.

After a moment of eternity, they broke away.

"What do they do more often... in the west of continent?" Yukimura asked, catching his breath.

"Kiss," Masamune answered, his breath as short. "But now we're going to do in a Japanese way," he added.

Yukimura sat up, trying to focus his gaze. Masamune looked at him, feeling dizzy again.

"You are lying," he said, his lips stretching in a smile.

"Why should I?" Judging from his bristle, Yukimura was apparently getting his self-assurance back.

"Because the younger one is at the bottom," Masamune explained his superiority, at least in the matter of knowledge of social rules.

"Why do you assume I'm younger?" Yukimura asked, frowning. He looked like a puss, again, Masamune thought fleetingly.

"It's obvious," One-Eyed Dragon replied, slipping the hand into his ruffled hair. He felt Yukimura's hot skin under his fingers. "You can ask Kojūrō, if you feel like... Tomorrow, though, for he went to bed."

"So, when were you born?" Yukimura asked, pouting.

Head tilted, Masamune looked at him as at the unruly child. "Eiroku 10, fifth of September..."

* * *

"I was born in Eiroku 10 too. Seventh of... May."

The silence that fell afterwards was very meaningful.

_You rock, Master_, Sarutobi Sasuke thought, muffling his chuckle. He could clearly imagine more than surprised look on the face of the Lord of Ōshū, who could never expect Sanada Yukimura to be as old as him - even some months older in addition. Sasuke snorted. Anyone could hardly believe it. With some kind of affection, Sasuke thought his master looked fifteen at the most. Many years had passed since Sasuke had used to give him a piggyback ride...

"But I don't know what is the Japanese way you've talked about," Yukimura's quiet voice reached him, "so we'd better continue in a western one..."

It was followed by a silence as well, and Sasuke decided two gentlemen had taken care of themselves again. Noiselessly, he settled himself on the bough, resting his back against the trunk.

The branch over his head dropped under the sudden burden. In the faint moonlight, Sasuke spotted a shapely body above.

"Kasuga?"

"Sasuke?" The girl looked down from the squat. She couldn't possibly be less surprised than him. "What are you doing here?"

"I keep an eye on my master."

"Yukimura-dono is in Ōshū? What is he looking here for?"

"Love and justice."

"I ask seriously. Well, never mind." She tossed her hair with a practised gesture. "I have a message for Date Masamune from Kenshin-sama."

"You don't possibly intend to deliver it now?" Sasuke skipped onto her branch.

"It's an urgent message. I'm not going to waste my time on the likes of you," she said coldly, standing up.

"You're breaking my heart, dear. I though something was between us," he put in a wistful tone.

"You always think too much," she retorted.

"I'm serious. And, by the way, I strongly advise you against interrupting Date-dono at the moment," he suggested.

"A message from Kenshin-sama won't wait...!" She looked down at him.

"Geez, leave them alone, miss." Sasuke grasped her by a hand.

"Them?" she asked in astonishment, breaking her hand free.

"Well, look." He bent down by her ear, pointing at the half-open garden-door. They had at least fragment of a view.

Kasuga opened her mouth and blinked.

"So, you see, you're a godsend, coming here! It was terribly boring before, and now we can take care of ourselves just like those two..."

"Sarutobi Sasuke, you disgust me!" she called, casting an icy glance at him and moving away from his reach.

"Shh, or they would hear us," he warned her, making the hoot of an owl as a camouflage. Although, he seriously doubt anything could divert the warriors' attention from each other now.

Her gaze doubtful, Kasuga looked in the direction of the house, then made a squeak.

"But... how can they...? I thought they didn't like each other...!"

"Didn't like? Darling, where's that famous feminine intuition gone...?"

"They've always tried to kill one another...!" she exclaimed agitated.

"Well, they say love and hate often go together. Just look, it's exactly like us. I love you, and you can't stand me." Sasuke heaved a theatrical sigh that remained completely ignored.

Kasuga peeked inside the house again as if she couldn't decide what to think about the view. Sasuke observed her. Her eyes were glistening, a faint blush coloured her cheeks. After the first shock had been gone, she seemed much more interested in the spectacle.

"To tell the truth... I may prefer it better than killing each other," she spoke thoughtfully.

"Love and justice, I told you. And we could as well..." he threw in, drawing closer again.

"Stay away from me, Sasuke. By the way," she said, collecting herself, "you're a pervert!"

"I told you, I keep an eye on my master. And, actually, I didn't watch! You can't possibly suspect me...?"

Kasuga looked at him doubtfully. "I suspect you of many things," she declared loftily and got back into peeping.

Sasuke smirked. "Grown-up men like it this way," he whispered into her ear. "Especially daimyō."

She glared at him indignantly. "Kenshin-sama would never...!"

"I've heard he run his dreamy eye over more than one. You know well about his entourage yourself... Who knows what is he doing now, and with whom..."

Kasuga went white. "I've immediately to go back to Echigo!" She turned around, ready to jump.

"Who's there?"

They looked down only to see Katakura Kojūrō enter the yard, ready to draw his sword. Sasuke sighed and jumped down.

"Sarutobi Sasuke with no ill intention," he announced. "And Kasuga," he added with satisfaction.

"What are you doing here?" Kojūrō let himself relax a tad, but remained vigilant.

"We've had a tryst, of course," Sasuke answered in a most casual tone.

"In Ōshū?"

"You have incredibly beautiful trees here," Sasuke replied, endearing, "and evening is perfect for a romance today," he added pointedly.

Kasuga jumped down onto the grass. "Sarutobi Sasuke, you lie like a monkey! I am going back to Echigo anyway."

"And the message?" Sasuke reminded her.

Kasuga turned and stood for a moment undecided. Then, from the spacious depths of her tight outfit, she took out a scroll and threw it to Kojūrō. The next moment she was gone.

"A letter? You should have sent it by post...!" Sasuke called after her. He was answered only by an owl-hooting. The evening was calm again. Sasuke looked at Kojūrō and shrugged. "She didn't even say goodbye. Or hello, for that matter... I'd better go, too."

The door slid open with a bang, revealing the Lord of Ōshū, Date Masamune. At first glance, one could realize he was furious - which happened, in his case, as often as... Kasuga's kindness to her fellow shinobi, Sasuke decided, sighing inwardly. Behind the One-Eyed Dragon he spotted Yukimura, a bit tousled but, apart from this, looking as conscious as ever. Or as dull as ever.

"Can't I have some peace even in my own house?" Masamune called out, his tone both menacing and resentful, glaring at them fiercely.

"I beg your forgiveness, Masamune-sama!" Kojūrō turned to his lord and bent his head. "I've discovered the intruders in the garden."

Masamune ground a curse.

"I'm leaving already," Sasuke informed. "You can't let the lady walk alone in the night. Have a nice evening, Date-dono, Katakura-dono, my master. Master, remember to get enough sleep!" he added in a tone concerned and mocking at the same time, then waved to everyone and disappeared between the trees.

* * *

Masamune looked at Kojūrō. "What was that about" he asked in an irate voice.

"Absolutely nothing, Masamune-sama," Kojūrō called, quickly hiding his hands behind his back. "I apologize once more, Masamune-sama. Good-night, Masamune-sama. I'm off." He bowed his head and vanished in the darkness behind the corner.

Masamune sighed, turned back and entered the room, sliding the door behind him.

Yukimura looked at him eyes wide-open. Masamune cast him a stern glance. Yukimura smiled. In a very silly way, Masamune decided afterwards, but somehow it seemed to fit him anyway. "What now?" he asked, feeling his anger leave already.

"I've never seen you so annoyed," Yukimura said, just like that. Curiously enough, in his mouth it sounded like a compliment. "You're always so... composed." He blushed.

Masamune felt like smiling, but he kept glowering at Yukimura for a while yet. "If that is so, then we're going to do it my way."

"Which means...?" Yukimura asked, slightly worried.

"Normally, you should do to me what you'd do to a girl..." Masamune instructed in a loftily voice.

Yukimura blushed even more. Masamune knelt down by him. "...but, judging from your look, you haven't experienced the pleasure of lying with a woman yet..." he added in a softer voice.

Yukimura was glowing crimson already. Masamune cupped his face. "...so we're going to do it my way..." he whispered, moving his hands onto Yukimura's back and taking him closer.

Yukimura moaned, pressing his body do him. Masamune kissed him, sliding the kimono off his shoulders. "...just this once."


End file.
